On Wednesday, the S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO) fought hard and carved out the smallest of gains. The benchmark index rose 0.1% to 7,393.4 points.
Will the market be able to build on this on Thursday? Here are five things to watch:
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ASX 200 expected to fall
The Australian share market looks set to fall on Thursday following a poor night of trade on Wall Street. According to the latest SPI futures, the ASX 200 is expected to open the day 12 points or 0.15% lower this morning. In late trade in the United States, the Dow Jones is down 1.3%, the S&P 500 has fallen 1.05% and the NASDAQ has dropped 0.75%. This has been put down to a combination of skittishness and profit taking.
BHP quarterly update
The BHP Group Ltd (ASX: BHP) share price will be on watch on Thursday when the mining giant releases its second quarter production update. According to a note out of Goldman Sachs, its analysts are expecting the Big Australian to report iron ore shipments of 74.8Mt, which is ahead of the consensus estimate of 71.9Mt. Goldman also expects copper production of 420kt and met coal production of 6.9Mt.
Oil prices fall
Energy shares Beach Energy Ltd (ASX: BPT) and Santos Ltd (ASX: STO) could have a tough day after oil prices tumbled on Wednesday night. According to Bloomberg, the WTI crude oil price is down 1.1% to US$79.27 a barrel and the Brent crude oil price is down 1.3% to US$84.82 a barrel. Oil prices fell on US recession concerns.
Allkem named as a buy
The Allkem Ltd (ASX: AKE) share price could be great value after its quarterly update. That's the view of analysts at Bell Potter. This morning the broker has retained its buy rating with a slightly trimmed price target of $19.36. It said: "We expect AKE's cash generation to lift substantially from 2023 with ongoing strength in lithium demand, commodity prices and production growth."
Gold price edges lower
ASX 200 gold shares Evolution Mining Ltd (ASX: EVN) and Regis Resources Limited (ASX: RRL) will be on watch after the gold price edged lower overnight. According to CNBC, the spot gold price is down 0.2% to US$1,905.8 an ounce. The precious metal appears to be running out of steam after some strong gains recently.
